We plant rosemary just outside the fence. They love to pick what grows through. And rosemary becomes an unstable bush here in the high desert within a couple years even with little or no tlc. Plus, it keeps pests away from your birds and more sensitive crops. --- I'd like to try more things that need very little attention as "Grow-Through" feed but that will have to wait on the new ranch. --- Can't go wrong with cow peas. They thrive on abusive conditions.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm - I had no idea what it would do here until I planted it into a bed. I just hoped it would do well enough to keep some bugs away but WOW does it like it here.
Ive never seen chicken tractors run over such barren ground. Fascinating to see how the area recovers over time, I'd highly recommend seeding behind the tractors.
Great suggestion Don. We did put alfalfa seed down behind this last run of chickens and we're hoping they hang in there over the summer to sprout this fall. Fingers crossed!
Hey Krissi, glad you're enjoying these. We're always trying to figure out how we can tweak what the rest of the country does and make it possible in the desert. Fingers crossed on this one!
Hi. I agree, we love in AZ as well, just above Havasu. Similar zone 9a, we are growing many different veggies in raised beds, maybe check out some of our videos if you like!
@@danachoate5361 Go for it! Do not let it put you off. The challenges are real, and the heat sometimes get us down, but in the end, it's so worth it and rewarding. Definitely give dryland permaculture a search, and in your part of the world, guys like Brad Lancaster.
Hey Judy! We know just how you feel. We also raise pigs for folks and are taking it in the teeth this season as feed prices have soared since setting our price for this season. I'd like to be hopeful things will change, but I don't think that will be the case any time soon. BTW, we were really surprised how much the chickens and turkeys devoured the dry cow peas. Thought that was going to just be a soil builder for us, but the peas are small enough for them to gobble them right down!
I'm learning so much from your channel. I'm a recent transplant from Phili and want to grow fruit trees, crops and chickens on my one acre lot in N. Scottsdale. Thank you for your videos.
Hey there Shannon! Welcome to AZ. We have a few challenges that are unique to the desert, but there are so many advantages as well. Shoot over any questions as they come up!
Hey Charlie! We're working in several permaculture principles here as we start to turn this desert green. Our first 2 years here was focused on getting the farming business up and running from a revenue standpoint, but now the focus is getting more green going in a regenerative manner!
Look into the Chaya Spinach Tree. Fully edible, fast growing and drough resistant. It takes our desert heat great, it just can't handle frost. It takes heavy pruning.
Your chickens might like some broken tree branches inside, pushed through the wire fencing and tied up. It makes great fin for them and security when predators are around. Having a worm farm to feed them is awesome too!😇
Great suggestions here. For some reason, we never considered twisting tree branches in through the fence. It would work great with grapevine and sweet potato vines as well. Thanks for the suggestions!
Amaranth. Worm bins buried in the ground and kept moist, shaded. Soldier fly larvae. Lettuce in beds next to the run. Amaranth needs some work, but it has stellar yields in sunny places. Close the circle by spreading the used chicken bedding on them. Sunflowers! 100%. :-) might want to use alfalfa too! Champion nitrogen fixer.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I went over your additional content...seems like you have things well in hand! I'm going to try your suggestion of using cowpeas as a summer cover. Thinking of trellicing them over beds on cow panels to provide shade for other plants.
@@timothyblazer1749 cowpeas should do well over a trellis. We usually let them trail on the ground and/or up around things like sunflower and they muscle right through just about anything our summers can throw at them!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm ordered a big bag. Going to use them to vine up on my fences as well. Thanks for the tip!! Will setup soak hoses on a timer and we'll see what happens :-)
We're hoping for the same results over here Pamela. Figure it's perfect timing having these in the fall when the pigs are back on the farm and the hens are roaming the green pasture again!
Hey Patrick! We just re-planted the same area you're seeing here this past weekend with the same 2 crops. It's truly impressive they do so well in the heat!
No we love it too, we just started our homestead and I love throwing that T-Post hammer tool thing and seeing those metal spears pierce the earth. But in Tennessee we have something called, "chirt," which is clay, sand and rock, and it's a real pain in the toosh to put a t-post into the ground. Better than west Texas though :)
I can definitely see how making the row run from east to west can make a big difference, especially when you plants get taller; since the sun will rise in the east and set in the west and will be more directly over top of the rows as it makes its rotation, but that angle will vary from spring to fall considerable, and it will make more of a difference toward the fall. look at your shadow cast behind you towards the chicken coup, and it's spring time, and it's going to change a bit as you get into October. It makes sense to run the rows perpendicular to the chicken coup, since it will give a more even sun broadcast to your plants! I noticed someone made a comment on it, but just because some professor says something, without reason, shouldn't be the reason we do something, so I thought I would speak a little bit of logic behind it. Some plants need full sun while some do okay with partial sun, but will thrive in full sun. thanks for sharing the video.
Excellent notes on this one. We have run planting rows both directions and we don't seem to see much difference during summer time growing. That being said, our raised beds for both Spring and Fall crops have the rows running East to West and they do great, so your point on the difference of season is valid.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I notice the difference in the direction shadows are cast both spring and fall, so it seems logical anyway. I think the biggest thing that has impressed me with your tree planting is the rings you make around them and the valve box filled and surrounded with rocks and then covering with the wood chips to help with water evaporation! That really is genius, whether you have irrigation or not; like you said, even dropping a water hose in them for a bit works as well, but I'm sure for a 170 trees, or whatever you are at now, would be a little bit cumbersome to do on a regular basis every week or whatever you have to do to keep the trees healthy. I think that has to be the most green that desert has seen. I'm sure all of that is a pretty good full time job.
@@comingtofull-ageinchrist6736 the water rings are definitely our biggest win so far. Lori is on the farm Full Time and even with all of the automation, she's still a very busy bee!
Thanks for another great video. This is such a great concept and anyone with a small flock should be doing this. So Many Benefits beyond just the free food. Growing sunflower seed for chickens is cheap, its easy to process and store, and offers great nutrition. But when it comes to the peas, there are two important misconceptions that show up on this subject again and again. 1. Almost all legumes (cowpeas, soybeans, peas, horticultural beans, chickpeas) contain anti-nutritional factors (ANF). Basically, enzymes in the legume interfere with the assimilation of protein and other nutrients by the animal. We all look at the analysis on say, field peas, and think, "24% protein, that's going to be great for my animals". The reality is that the birds excrete a significant portion of that protein. To inactivate ANFs legumes must be heated to high temperatures. This is why packaged feeds contain roasted soybean meal as the primary protein source. 2. When legumes are allowed to complete their life cycle, ie set seed, they consume the majority of the nitrogen they fix. Sure there may be some benefit, but if you really want enough nitrogen for heavy feeders (like a subsequent batch of sunflower) better to undersow the patch with red clover or alfalfa which fix significantly more N, can be fed to the chickens, or chopped and dropped for a high value mulch. Hope this is useful. Cheers
New subscriber from UK. This year I’m planting sweetcorn, purple sprouting broccoli, flax , peas, sunflower to feed my hens ducks and geese as they eat the grass so quickly so this year I can reduce the area and give it time to rest while feeding them what I’ve grown Mandy in Devon 🇬🇧
Hey there Mandy! It sure sounds like you have a solid crop there for your hens, ducks and geese. We've found our ducks and geese will eat pretty much anything green!
Nowhere near you, but I have some squash and pumpkins for my birds in the winter. They appreciate the variety. I free range so I also throw the feed into areas I want scratched up like my blackberries. All the best to you. Looks nice!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I lost my dad a couple of years ago. Da last time he took me and my brother and sister to Cairo was when I was ten years old or something like that. I was thinking bout getting a farm in Europe. I was a day away from buying a farm in Germany the deal fell through the day the war started.
@@BearMeat4Dinner sorry to hear about your dad. I (Duane) lost mine back in 2017 and a few months later we started this channel in honor of him. Losing him is one of the many reasons we're on this piece of land today.
I'm in zone 10b (South Florida), so different challenges than you. I'm a complete noob when it comes to raising chickens. I want to learn to eliminate the need for store bought feed.
With your year round warm temps you should be able to feed your chickens pretty well with far fewer supplemental feed from the store. Smaller breed chickens, like white leghorns, will produce well for you and require less inputs. They are also very good foragers and with your abundance of green and plenty of bugs they can do pretty well on their own. Just realize your egg production may be reduced if they're not at least some store bought feed.
I love this idea, will the chicken also eat the leaves of the sunflower? You know what, you can do the same on another part of the pasture, not to plant crops but to isolate the area so the weeds can recuperate and become nice and green again.
Great suggestion on that Rita. We have a lot of options with this pasture after seeing the space we had that was untouched by the tractors when they went over the pasture. This was the most obvious for us to work in, but when we don't have the broiler chickens we have a lot of open space!
You need a landscape rake. I have just about destroyed mine from constant use over three new properties. They are worth it though for smoothing out ground and kicking out rocks.
Great suggestion there Alan. We actually have one, but I don't use it near enough. We have to work on the area the pigs were just on, so it will definitely be making an appearance!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I will say that it works better if you have some bulk to you. As the FAT theist I have enough to really use it properly. I am not certain if you have the size but I look forward to finding out!
Glad you enjoyed this one Richard. We went so long without a drone and being able to catch those shots, so now we're trying to incorporate them wherever we can to help get some perspective on things.
My late grandmother had hearing aids because she was pretty deaf without them, and they gave her constant grief with chafing and pressing on the delicate skin inside her ears. You can reduce the likelihood this will happen to you as you get older by wearing earmuffs while using power machinery or other loud tools such as a post driver.
Amazing, inspiring. I also use woodchips to keep soil moisture in and birds off during germination. It's a big help. Your setup is very clean and well planned. Kudos!
Have you tried using some thing like drip tape to plants? Or maybe some times sprinklers- on timers. To save time and maybe some evaporation over hand watering, especially when it's done multiple times a day. You have such great videos! I have learned so much! ,am in inland No.Calif. where the climate is becoming more arid,we get more winter rain but rarely any summer rain and many more 100 plus days. Ground water is also limited. Have done quite a bit of rain harvest with berms and some roof catchment, but it's costly. Again thanks for all the ideas you share.
Hey there Penny. You have a solid suggestion on the drip tape. We use that in our garden beds, so we have plenty of it left over to add to this area. What part of CA are you in? I (Duane) am from SoCal (Gardena) and used to travel up to Southern Oregon every Summer and remember just hot it was.
Wood planting some small trees in the pasture help with the ability to retain moisture in the soil due to more shade? It seems like it’s still very dry.
That's a great suggestion Veronica and it would probably help some. The challenge would be moving the chicken tractors around the trees and this is also the leech field for our septic system, so we wouldn't be able to grow trees on it. Trees also have a tendency to shade out grass which is really what we're trying to achieve for the chickens.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm A shame you don't have the range to fly it over here. There is some stunning stuff to capture around here. Unfortunately, a drone is not in my near future. Take care guys, Daz.
Great suggestion Claudio. We're definitely considering a few additional options and a worm farm would definitely make sense. With the right setup we can pretty easily do them year round here in the desert.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I would definitely suggest a well shaded area, my worm farm is shaded almost all day, but the side that gets a little late afternoon sun still dries out well below your temperatures. It’s also black plastic boxes tho...
Try looking into tepary beans. I live in south central Texas and they do great here planted with the monsoon seasons. They thrive in the heat and make a quick crop. I got my start from Native Seed Search.
Funny you should suggest that Annella. We've had several folks suggest the same and we picked some up a few weeks back. Just waiting for the monsoon season to start to plant them. Glad to hear they're doing well for you in central TX!
You are going to need more land soon. ;0) I grew up on an 8 Acre, Orchard half Horse Stud and 13 Dogs. 40 Horses Like the way you are going about, what you are doing. Painted Double Plank Fences. ;0)
It's funny you should mention that. Were were just talking about the back half of the land we're on now and what we want to do with it realizing there's still a lot of space we haven't filled yet. The biggest thing would be larger livestock and the amount we will need for our customer base. If we try to raise them regeneratively it takes a LOT of space! 40 horses, wow!
Very true and it's one of the many reasons we are on a private well here on the farm. The aquifer that feeds our farm is filled by local, AZ rainfall and has about double the recharge rate vs it's current discharge, In addition, all wells in this part of Arizona have restrictions on how much water can be drawn and what it can be used for. That being said, water is the major concern for everyone, so your point is valid.
Very true! We let the chickens and turkeys loose in this area at the end of the season and they DEVOURED the left over plant material and the beans! Voracious eaters for sure.
Glad you enjoyed this one Karen. For plantings like this we simply overhand water a few times a week (depending on season and rainfall). Drip tape would be ideal though.
Hey Luisa, that's a great question. The main reason for multiple breeds was for us to test them out to see how they would do. We have tried several breeds out over the years and most of them have done well, but we're narrowing it down to a few breeds we plan on crossing here on the farm over time. Lori also likes different colored eggs to offer for sale! :)
We did include the harvest of seed heads in one of our vlogs and the chickens loved them. Our expansion of sunflowers didn't work out so well as the quail are getting to all the small shoots. I'll link the harvest video for you here; ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html
Mallow? Nasty invasive, but it's funny they're not digging up the roots, which were once used to make candy. Again, being nosy, but if you ran a fence down the middle, you could have them a week on one side and week the other. Mom had an acre for 500 layers, and a second acre for garden for canning. Each year they got switched. Come fall, Dad planted cereal rye, then undersowed clover for them, which is good feed for poultry. When rye blooms, if clipped high it dies. No weed seed survived long, and the chickens loved it. That's a sod hook, a tool I am far too familiar with... 'Way too much :) 10:18, perfect scene, the mountains in the background. and man, I love welded wire for fencing, but that chain link beats it by a mile. Beautiful! Sunflower leaves are like ice cream to animals! Cowpeas, great! But with all that manure, aren't you worried about nitrogen burn? the husband of a cousin had just a little too much beer before fertilizing 20 acres of sweet corn. Yeah. A few months later, the corn was only waist high and dying. Donno what happened to him, but her kids claimed she had to buy a new war stick, a Louisville slugger :) Hasta!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Be welcome! Been fighting an infection, aspergillus. Nasty thing for a gardener to catch LOL. Keep an eye out for kissing bugs. I killed one in the bedroom tonight and it's warmer up there than our little valley. Viva the Farm!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Amen! And, yes, half the garden is lacking plants. I've been pulling flowers and fruit off the strawberries. They're not making runners, and that bugs me!
The chickens will eat both. At the end of the season we let them into this area and they clean up all of the leftover greens and seeds that have fallen. That includes the cowpeas (plant and beans).
Hey Wouter. We did a harvest video on them when they were finished and the chickens did enjoy them. I'll link the harvest video for you here; ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html
Hey Paul. The sunflowers and cowpeas only have the initial purchase cost of seeds and they are VERY inexpensive. After that you save the seeds for subsequent years. Beyond that it would only be water and labor.
I believe we filmed a harvest video on it that I'll link for you here; ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html One thing we did not film was letting the chickens and turkeys into this area at the end of the season. They completely DEVOURED the remaining foliage and nearly all of the cowpeas that wound up on the ground!
Hey Viola. We did do a quick follow up when we harvested the sunflowers that I'll link for you here; ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html The chickens and turkeys also had a great time tearing through the "leftovers" at the end of the season gobbling up the remaining sunflower and cowpea seeds!
They're a little picky when it comes to the weeds around here. If it's mallow, they're interested. Otherwise it's hit or miss and it always needs to be green!
We contracted to have that one done by a local fencing company. I (Duane) am just not handy enough to attempt it! It's been a few years since we had this one done, so I imagine costs are quite a bit higher. I believe it was about $3k back in 2019.
Another great question. We're looking at different options now that we're past most of the startup phase on the farm. The biggest challenge we will always face is the limit of how much space we can keep under irrigation. We have water restrictions here that we abide by as well as the natural limitation that literally nothing will grow here without irrigation. At least nothing that will produce enough biomass to make an impact will. Actually, one of them is already in place. We have 18 mulberry trees (6 varieties) on the property and one of the reasons is fodder for livestock. Eventually we'll be incorporating moringa into the mix for the same reason. Just trying to figure out placement to ensure it makes sense. Most of our livestock are in temporary pens until we narrow down what's profitable enough for us to continue. Lots of things to settle on still.
Great question and yes, we do get rats and other critters. They're around whenever food is being grown or you have animals consuming feed, so they're pretty common. We didn't have chickens at our place in the city but we did have rats because of the fruit trees.
Hey Tony. We've actually planted Sorghum both last year and again this year. I'll link a video we did at the end of last season for you here; ruclips.net/video/AI-BO7wCR8Q/видео.html It's primarily for soil building, but we are trying it as "pasture" for our turkeys this coming Summer/Fall.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thank you for the link, you did exactly what I was thinking, using sorghum for biomass to create better soil. You mentioned the birds were eating the seeds, wild birds or did the chickens eat it also?
@@tonyperkins3505 It was mainly wild birds (which we have a LOT of being the only game in town for water and food). We figure if we can get the turkeys in the same area it will feed them, add additional nutrition to the soil and keep the cycle going. It will be our first attempt with this type of rotation (pigs, sorghum, turkeys), so we'll see how it goes!
We're definitely going to thin, but I wouldn't think East/West vs North/South planting would make a difference in summer growing. Have you found it helps with these?
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I just viewed a video for Egyptian researcher and it was mentioned in the comments which the professor supervisor agreed on. I need to ask you another thing for a former episode. Do you remember how many times you add fish hydrolysate to your previous pasture 5000 Sq ft near your house?
@@walidzahran601 We're going to be seeding behind the pigs again this weekend, so maybe we should try that East/West approach to the rows. For the pasture we only use the fish emulsion when we first establish the pasture before the chickens are run across it. Once the chickens have put manure on the ground we only use that as fertilizer moving forward.
You should really look into building up your top soil with organic matter and completely eliminating tilling all together. It destroys the life of your soil
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm yes please do it it's not expensive.. There are tons of video for cheap DIY specially from African countries they got good knowledge about cutting cost.. Your chickens and turkey would love it
Thanks for this info, it gives me some ideas on how to prepare for my chickens. ? Have you ever read John 3:16 in the Bible, God's Word. Here's what it says: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. You can have this life by believing in Jesus Christ, God's Son. Go ahead and invite Him into your life, He'll come in and change it, so you can live with Him in heaven. 🙏💞
Glad you enjoyed this one and yes, I have read it many times. In fact, I read through the entire New Testament every 2 years or so. Along with a chapter of Proverbs and Psalms each morning.
Have you considered raising insect feeders? Probably the absolute lowest cost/space for the nutrition. Dubia roaches and mealworms are incredibly easy. They require very little care. I've raised them for reptiles but I'm sure chickens would love them. They'd readily eat that fruit you didn't want to ripen. Incredibly low risk as far as them escaping and causing a problem since they need humidity to breed which we obviously lack here.
That is a FANTASTIC question Michelle and we're kicking around some ideas. Interesting you mention Dubias. Our son had a bearded dragon for a few years and he bread the roaches. Lori was a little put off for a bit, but eventually came around. We've considered black solider flies, but for some reason I didn't think of the Dubia. Especially when they're small. Hmm....
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm If you do raise Dubias or crickets then be sure to wear at least a dust mask and preferably gloves when cleaning them. Repeated exposure, specifically the shed exoskeletons, can result in very nasty allergic reactions and even anaphylaxis. People downplay it but I've personally known keepers that cannot keep Dubias anymore due to the allergies.
@@xxMichelleUnicornxx I do remember the tub we kept them in getting pretty nasty over time, so that definitely makes sense. Thanks for the warning/tip on that!
We plant rosemary just outside the fence. They love to pick what grows through. And rosemary becomes an unstable bush here in the high desert within a couple years even with little or no tlc. Plus, it keeps pests away from your birds and more sensitive crops. --- I'd like to try more things that need very little attention as "Grow-Through" feed but that will have to wait on the new ranch. --- Can't go wrong with cow peas. They thrive on abusive conditions.
Great points on the Rosemary. Once we have some on the farm we need to incorporate that more often!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm - I had no idea what it would do here until I planted it into a bed. I just hoped it would do well enough to keep some bugs away but WOW does it like it here.
Ive never seen chicken tractors run over such barren ground. Fascinating to see how the area recovers over time, I'd highly recommend seeding behind the tractors.
Great suggestion Don. We did put alfalfa seed down behind this last run of chickens and we're hoping they hang in there over the summer to sprout this fall. Fingers crossed!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Good luck! Hopefully one day you can try a robust grass there :)
Loving seeing arizona examples! It’s been hard finding examples in such a harsh environment, but I have appreciated all your videos!
Hey Krissi, glad you're enjoying these. We're always trying to figure out how we can tweak what the rest of the country does and make it possible in the desert. Fingers crossed on this one!
Me too! I was looking at land in west TX and was concerned about how to farm in a very dry desert area.
Hi. I agree, we love in AZ as well, just above Havasu. Similar zone 9a, we are growing many different veggies in raised beds, maybe check out some of our videos if you like!
@@danachoate5361 Go for it! Do not let it put you off. The challenges are real, and the heat sometimes get us down, but in the end, it's so worth it and rewarding. Definitely give dryland permaculture a search, and in your part of the world, guys like Brad Lancaster.
I’m in west Texas! This is just what I needed for my chickens, cuz feed has doubled in price! Thank you, sincerely an new subscriber!
Hey Judy! We know just how you feel. We also raise pigs for folks and are taking it in the teeth this season as feed prices have soared since setting our price for this season. I'd like to be hopeful things will change, but I don't think that will be the case any time soon. BTW, we were really surprised how much the chickens and turkeys devoured the dry cow peas. Thought that was going to just be a soil builder for us, but the peas are small enough for them to gobble them right down!
I'm learning so much from your channel. I'm a recent transplant from Phili and want to grow fruit trees, crops and chickens on my one acre lot in N. Scottsdale. Thank you for your videos.
Hey there Shannon! Welcome to AZ. We have a few challenges that are unique to the desert, but there are so many advantages as well. Shoot over any questions as they come up!
I’m in Ontario Canada but seeing all the dryness makes me want to bring permaculture methods to build topsoil and ecosystem oasis!
Hey Charlie! We're working in several permaculture principles here as we start to turn this desert green. Our first 2 years here was focused on getting the farming business up and running from a revenue standpoint, but now the focus is getting more green going in a regenerative manner!
Look into the Chaya Spinach Tree. Fully edible, fast growing and drough resistant. It takes our desert heat great, it just can't handle frost. It takes heavy pruning.
Thanks for the suggestion Alan. We're always up for finding new plants that do well for us here!
Your chickens might like some broken tree branches inside, pushed through the wire fencing and tied up. It makes great fin for them and security when predators are around. Having a worm farm to feed them is awesome too!😇
Great suggestions here. For some reason, we never considered twisting tree branches in through the fence. It would work great with grapevine and sweet potato vines as well. Thanks for the suggestions!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Your welcome💜
Amaranth. Worm bins buried in the ground and kept moist, shaded. Soldier fly larvae. Lettuce in beds next to the run.
Amaranth needs some work, but it has stellar yields in sunny places. Close the circle by spreading the used chicken bedding on them.
Sunflowers! 100%. :-) might want to use alfalfa too! Champion nitrogen fixer.
Great suggestions here Timothy!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I went over your additional content...seems like you have things well in hand! I'm going to try your suggestion of using cowpeas as a summer cover. Thinking of trellicing them over beds on cow panels to provide shade for other plants.
@@timothyblazer1749 cowpeas should do well over a trellis. We usually let them trail on the ground and/or up around things like sunflower and they muscle right through just about anything our summers can throw at them!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm ordered a big bag. Going to use them to vine up on my fences as well. Thanks for the tip!! Will setup soak hoses on a timer and we'll see what happens :-)
I've grown black sun flower seeds for years My chickens and pigs love them
We're hoping for the same results over here Pamela. Figure it's perfect timing having these in the fall when the pigs are back on the farm and the hens are roaming the green pasture again!
Sunflower idea is great definitely going to incorporate that in the future!! These Arizona summers are brutal!
Hey Patrick! We just re-planted the same area you're seeing here this past weekend with the same 2 crops. It's truly impressive they do so well in the heat!
Maybe i am just weird but i find it soothing to put t-posts in
Hey guys. Ok, so that may be a little different!
No we love it too, we just started our homestead and I love throwing that T-Post hammer tool thing and seeing those metal spears pierce the earth. But in Tennessee we have something called, "chirt," which is clay, sand and rock, and it's a real pain in the toosh to put a t-post into the ground.
Better than west Texas though :)
I hate doing t-posts, though my dirt is more like solid rock :p
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Yeah but i am a bit odd. Sometimes the little things mean the most to me
@@hvacstudent967 I think I'll pass on the "chirt"!
I can definitely see how making the row run from east to west can make a big difference, especially when you plants get taller; since the sun will rise in the east and set in the west and will be more directly over top of the rows as it makes its rotation, but that angle will vary from spring to fall considerable, and it will make more of a difference toward the fall. look at your shadow cast behind you towards the chicken coup, and it's spring time, and it's going to change a bit as you get into October. It makes sense to run the rows perpendicular to the chicken coup, since it will give a more even sun broadcast to your plants!
I noticed someone made a comment on it, but just because some professor says something, without reason, shouldn't be the reason we do something, so I thought I would speak a little bit of logic behind it. Some plants need full sun while some do okay with partial sun, but will thrive in full sun. thanks for sharing the video.
Excellent notes on this one. We have run planting rows both directions and we don't seem to see much difference during summer time growing. That being said, our raised beds for both Spring and Fall crops have the rows running East to West and they do great, so your point on the difference of season is valid.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I notice the difference in the direction shadows are cast both spring and fall, so it seems logical anyway.
I think the biggest thing that has impressed me with your tree planting is the rings you make around them and the valve box filled and surrounded with rocks and then covering with the wood chips to help with water evaporation! That really is genius, whether you have irrigation or not; like you said, even dropping a water hose in them for a bit works as well, but I'm sure for a 170 trees, or whatever you are at now, would be a little bit cumbersome to do on a regular basis every week or whatever you have to do to keep the trees healthy. I think that has to be the most green that desert has seen. I'm sure all of that is a pretty good full time job.
@@comingtofull-ageinchrist6736 the water rings are definitely our biggest win so far. Lori is on the farm Full Time and even with all of the automation, she's still a very busy bee!
Thanks for another great video. This is such a great concept and anyone with a small flock should be doing this. So Many Benefits beyond just the free food. Growing sunflower seed for chickens is cheap, its easy to process and store, and offers great nutrition.
But when it comes to the peas, there are two important misconceptions that show up on this subject again and again.
1. Almost all legumes (cowpeas, soybeans, peas, horticultural beans, chickpeas) contain anti-nutritional factors (ANF). Basically, enzymes in the legume interfere with the assimilation of protein and other nutrients by the animal. We all look at the analysis on say, field peas, and think, "24% protein, that's going to be great for my animals". The reality is that the birds excrete a significant portion of that protein. To inactivate ANFs legumes must be heated to high temperatures. This is why packaged feeds contain roasted soybean meal as the primary protein source.
2. When legumes are allowed to complete their life cycle, ie set seed, they consume the majority of the nitrogen they fix. Sure there may be some benefit, but if you really want enough nitrogen for heavy feeders (like a subsequent batch of sunflower) better to undersow the patch with red clover or alfalfa which fix significantly more N, can be fed to the chickens, or chopped and dropped for a high value mulch.
Hope this is useful. Cheers
Thanks for the notes on these. Lots to consider here!
New subscriber from UK.
This year I’m planting sweetcorn, purple sprouting broccoli, flax , peas, sunflower to feed my hens ducks and geese as they eat the grass so quickly so this year I can reduce the area and give it time to rest while feeding them what I’ve grown
Mandy in Devon 🇬🇧
Hey there Mandy! It sure sounds like you have a solid crop there for your hens, ducks and geese. We've found our ducks and geese will eat pretty much anything green!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm mine are dam fussy
cheers Mandy
Nowhere near you, but I have some squash and pumpkins for my birds in the winter. They appreciate the variety. I free range so I also throw the feed into areas I want scratched up like my blackberries. All the best to you. Looks nice!
That's a great suggestion for winter feed. Harvest in the Fall, store and feed all Winter. Love it!
Great work. You guys are real food pioneers. Keep up the good work.
Glad you enjoyed this one!
Try planting Buckwheat as a Cover crop it also is a Nitrogen fixer when you till it back in
Great suggestion!
Dude your whole joint reminds me of Egypt. And other places in the world that they are turning desert into real viable land and soil. Great job!!!❤
We're very close to Egypt and most of the middle east when it comes to our weather, so we're hopeful we can follow in their footsteps!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I lost my dad a couple of years ago. Da last time he took me and my brother and sister to Cairo was when I was ten years old or something like that. I was thinking bout getting a farm in Europe. I was a day away from buying a farm in Germany the deal fell through the day the war started.
@@BearMeat4Dinner sorry to hear about your dad. I (Duane) lost mine back in 2017 and a few months later we started this channel in honor of him. Losing him is one of the many reasons we're on this piece of land today.
I'm in zone 10b (South Florida), so different challenges than you. I'm a complete noob when it comes to raising chickens. I want to learn to eliminate the need for store bought feed.
With your year round warm temps you should be able to feed your chickens pretty well with far fewer supplemental feed from the store. Smaller breed chickens, like white leghorns, will produce well for you and require less inputs. They are also very good foragers and with your abundance of green and plenty of bugs they can do pretty well on their own. Just realize your egg production may be reduced if they're not at least some store bought feed.
I love this idea, will the chicken also eat the leaves of the sunflower? You know what, you can do the same on another part of the pasture, not to plant crops but to isolate the area so the weeds can recuperate and become nice and green again.
Great suggestion on that Rita. We have a lot of options with this pasture after seeing the space we had that was untouched by the tractors when they went over the pasture. This was the most obvious for us to work in, but when we don't have the broiler chickens we have a lot of open space!
You need a landscape rake. I have just about destroyed mine from constant use over three new properties. They are worth it though for smoothing out ground and kicking out rocks.
Great suggestion there Alan. We actually have one, but I don't use it near enough. We have to work on the area the pigs were just on, so it will definitely be making an appearance!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I will say that it works better if you have some bulk to you. As the FAT theist I have enough to really use it properly. I am not certain if you have the size but I look forward to finding out!
@@TheFatTheist ours attaches to the back of the ride on mower. I definitely do NOT have the size to control most things. Lori can attest to that one!!
Great Video.
Drone shot at the end a Bonus.
Thanks
Glad you enjoyed this one Richard. We went so long without a drone and being able to catch those shots, so now we're trying to incorporate them wherever we can to help get some perspective on things.
My late grandmother had hearing aids because she was pretty deaf without them, and they gave her constant grief with chafing and pressing on the delicate skin inside her ears.
You can reduce the likelihood this will happen to you as you get older by wearing earmuffs while using power machinery or other loud tools such as a post driver.
Excellent advice!
Amazing, inspiring. I also use woodchips to keep soil moisture in and birds off during germination. It's a big help.
Your setup is very clean and well planned. Kudos!
That would be a solid addition to cover those seeds!
One way I've seen to help germinate seeds
After watering
Cover it up with plastic sheets
Basically a mini green house
Excellent suggestion Jim, especially where temps are a bit cooler.
Thanks! First year with chicken and looking to feed them and our kids. Thank you
Congrats on those new peeps!! They'll love the sunflower seeds.
Have you tried using some thing like drip tape to plants? Or maybe some times sprinklers- on timers. To save time and maybe some evaporation over hand watering, especially when it's done multiple times a day.
You have such great videos! I have learned so much! ,am in inland No.Calif. where the climate is becoming more arid,we get more winter rain but rarely any summer rain and many more 100 plus days. Ground water is also limited. Have done quite a bit of rain harvest with berms and some roof catchment, but it's costly.
Again thanks for all the ideas you share.
Hey there Penny. You have a solid suggestion on the drip tape. We use that in our garden beds, so we have plenty of it left over to add to this area.
What part of CA are you in? I (Duane) am from SoCal (Gardena) and used to travel up to Southern Oregon every Summer and remember just hot it was.
Wood planting some small trees in the pasture help with the ability to retain moisture in the soil due to more shade? It seems like it’s still very dry.
That's a great suggestion Veronica and it would probably help some. The challenge would be moving the chicken tractors around the trees and this is also the leech field for our septic system, so we wouldn't be able to grow trees on it. Trees also have a tendency to shade out grass which is really what we're trying to achieve for the chickens.
G'day guys.
What a great idea. That drone is such a good investment too.
Good on you guys,
Daz.
Hey there Daz! Yes, that drone is becoming a great tool for us. We went too long without one, but later is better than never is how we see it!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm A shame you don't have the range to fly it over here. There is some stunning stuff to capture around here.
Unfortunately, a drone is not in my near future.
Take care guys,
Daz.
Just got 6 leghorns. Here we gooooo
Leghorns are a really solid laying breed. They're a bit flighty, but they lay very consistently.
Have yall started a worm farm? If so, the worm casings work as anotjer source of feed for yalls chickens
Great suggestion Claudio. We're definitely considering a few additional options and a worm farm would definitely make sense. With the right setup we can pretty easily do them year round here in the desert.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I would definitely suggest a well shaded area, my worm farm is shaded almost all day, but the side that gets a little late afternoon sun still dries out well below your temperatures. It’s also black plastic boxes tho...
@@thomasa5619 I was thinking the same with the shade. There is a large worm farm here in AZ and they use covered areas and shade cloth everywhere.
THANK U FOR THE INFO
Glad you found this one useful Rhonda!
Try looking into tepary beans. I live in south central Texas and they do great here planted with the monsoon seasons. They thrive in the heat and make a quick crop. I got my start from Native Seed Search.
Funny you should suggest that Annella. We've had several folks suggest the same and we picked some up a few weeks back. Just waiting for the monsoon season to start to plant them. Glad to hear they're doing well for you in central TX!
You are going to need more land soon. ;0) I grew up on an 8 Acre, Orchard half Horse Stud and 13 Dogs. 40 Horses Like the way you are going about, what you are doing.
Painted Double Plank Fences. ;0)
It's funny you should mention that. Were were just talking about the back half of the land we're on now and what we want to do with it realizing there's still a lot of space we haven't filled yet. The biggest thing would be larger livestock and the amount we will need for our customer base. If we try to raise them regeneratively it takes a LOT of space! 40 horses, wow!
Nice ! farmers always work hard
I agree. If you're doing it right, you should be breaking a sweat!
I live in AZ and I can not get a tpost in the ground that easy. Nice
I will say a little water on the ground ahead of time definitely makes a BIG difference for driving those posts!
I applaud the efforts , however I think the underlying issue with sustainability in this scenario is water
Very true and it's one of the many reasons we are on a private well here on the farm. The aquifer that feeds our farm is filled by local, AZ rainfall and has about double the recharge rate vs it's current discharge, In addition, all wells in this part of Arizona have restrictions on how much water can be drawn and what it can be used for. That being said, water is the major concern for everyone, so your point is valid.
Black eyed peas are a good source of protein for the chickens.
Very true! We let the chickens and turkeys loose in this area at the end of the season and they DEVOURED the left over plant material and the beans! Voracious eaters for sure.
Great job, thank you for sharing.
We think about you guys every time we post a chicken video, knowing you're not able to raise these. Shake my head every time I think of it!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm 🐓👍🏽👊🏽
0:32 look at his shadow lol
Ok, now I need to see what you're looking at....
Wooooooo them legs! 😂
My 1st intro to your channel. ❤️ the sustainability and use of the cowpeas and sunflower seeds. How will you water?
Glad you enjoyed this one Karen. For plantings like this we simply overhand water a few times a week (depending on season and rainfall). Drip tape would be ideal though.
Chickens eat acorns in spring when the tannines are removed in autumn and winter by the weather.
Now that is something I did not know. Free feed right there!
Thank you for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed this one Wesley!
Lombardy Poplar are the fastest shade trees as well as Sycamore for extreme heat.
I was not aware of a poplar that did well for us here in the Phoenix area. I'll have to check that one out as I'd like to add that to the mix here!
I'm growing feed corn for mine that I got to grow from scratch feed.
Now that is a great option as well. Plus, it's cheap!
Can I ask why you have 2 different types of chicken? I know broilers are bred for eating but what is the purpose of the others?
Hey Luisa, that's a great question. The main reason for multiple breeds was for us to test them out to see how they would do. We have tried several breeds out over the years and most of them have done well, but we're narrowing it down to a few breeds we plan on crossing here on the farm over time. Lori also likes different colored eggs to offer for sale! :)
Nice music...sfunny cuz am not into country. Good video
Glad you enjoyed this one Leo. We try to switch up the music in different videos, so glad this one didn't grate on you too much!
I'm guessing that the sunflower seed hulls are safe...? Easily digested?
Yes, the hulls are not a problem for the birds. They are designed to easily crush up whole seeds with their gizzards during digestion.
We grow sun flowers and feed them full heads before we dry them
Right on Joseph. It's amazing how quickly they plow through these seeds!
Is there an update video as to how this worked for you and the chickens?
We did include the harvest of seed heads in one of our vlogs and the chickens loved them. Our expansion of sunflowers didn't work out so well as the quail are getting to all the small shoots. I'll link the harvest video for you here;
ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html
Mallow? Nasty invasive, but it's funny they're not digging up the roots, which were once used to make candy.
Again, being nosy, but if you ran a fence down the middle, you could have them a week on one side and week the other. Mom had an acre for 500 layers, and a second acre for garden for canning. Each year they got switched. Come fall, Dad planted cereal rye, then undersowed clover for them, which is good feed for poultry. When rye blooms, if clipped high it dies. No weed seed survived long, and the chickens loved it.
That's a sod hook, a tool I am far too familiar with... 'Way too much :)
10:18, perfect scene, the mountains in the background. and man, I love welded wire for fencing, but that chain link beats it by a mile. Beautiful!
Sunflower leaves are like ice cream to animals! Cowpeas, great! But with all that manure, aren't you worried about nitrogen burn? the husband of a cousin had just a little too much beer before fertilizing 20 acres of sweet corn. Yeah. A few months later, the corn was only waist high and dying. Donno what happened to him, but her kids claimed she had to buy a new war stick, a Louisville slugger :) Hasta!
Great question on the nitrogen and I think with it being tilled in a bit we'll be ok. So far, so good. Your stories never cease to crack me up Martin!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Be welcome! Been fighting an infection, aspergillus. Nasty thing for a gardener to catch LOL.
Keep an eye out for kissing bugs. I killed one in the bedroom tonight and it's warmer up there than our little valley. Viva the Farm!
@@marschlosser4540 had to look up Aspergillus and it sounds NASTY! Praying for a quick recovery for you. There's planting to be done still!!!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Amen! And, yes, half the garden is lacking plants. I've been pulling flowers and fruit off the strawberries. They're not making runners, and that bugs me!
@@marschlosser4540 funny how differently we look at runners on our berries here vs the rest of the country. We want them everywhere!!
Do the chickens eat the Sunflower microgreens or the grown plant?
The chickens will eat both. At the end of the season we let them into this area and they clean up all of the leftover greens and seeds that have fallen. That includes the cowpeas (plant and beans).
Good work. Looking for how it looks now a year on.
We were really surprised to see how much the chickens and turkeys loved the cowpeas. Plants, beans and all!
Is there an update somewhere on how this adventure went on?
Hey Wouter. We did a harvest video on them when they were finished and the chickens did enjoy them. I'll link the harvest video for you here;
ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Thanks, I'll check it out
Great idea
So far, so good. They're coming in well after about 2 weeks. Now to see if we can get them through the summer heat!
Thanks for sharing
Sure thing. Glad you found this one useful!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm 🙏👌❤
I'm curious about the economics. How much it costs to grow chicken feed vs buying it.
Hey Paul. The sunflowers and cowpeas only have the initial purchase cost of seeds and they are VERY inexpensive. After that you save the seeds for subsequent years. Beyond that it would only be water and labor.
Comfrey grows fast cut tops off and keep it watered to feed animals
Great suggestion on comfrey Denise.
Hey there, nice video 👍 Is there a follow-up on this?
I believe we filmed a harvest video on it that I'll link for you here;
ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html
One thing we did not film was letting the chickens and turkeys into this area at the end of the season. They completely DEVOURED the remaining foliage and nearly all of the cowpeas that wound up on the ground!
Did you do a follow up video to show the results??
Hey Viola. We did do a quick follow up when we harvested the sunflowers that I'll link for you here;
ruclips.net/video/aOi_NcxZXOw/видео.html
The chickens and turkeys also had a great time tearing through the "leftovers" at the end of the season gobbling up the remaining sunflower and cowpea seeds!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thanks for the reply - it’s a hot topic right now bc of problems with the commercial chicken feed
Wouldn't you want to plant in the same row for nitrogen fixation?
These were planted close enough together that the roots were able to grow into one another.
Would the chickens eat those weeds?
They're a little picky when it comes to the weeds around here. If it's mallow, they're interested. Otherwise it's hit or miss and it always needs to be green!
Did you put that chainlink in yourself? What's the cost look like for something that massive? I have tons of coyotes.
We contracted to have that one done by a local fencing company. I (Duane) am just not handy enough to attempt it! It's been a few years since we had this one done, so I imagine costs are quite a bit higher. I believe it was about $3k back in 2019.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Sorry for missing this response initially. Thanks very much for the info. I appreciate it.
have you considered a fodder feed system?
Another great question. We're looking at different options now that we're past most of the startup phase on the farm. The biggest challenge we will always face is the limit of how much space we can keep under irrigation. We have water restrictions here that we abide by as well as the natural limitation that literally nothing will grow here without irrigation. At least nothing that will produce enough biomass to make an impact will. Actually, one of them is already in place. We have 18 mulberry trees (6 varieties) on the property and one of the reasons is fodder for livestock. Eventually we'll be incorporating moringa into the mix for the same reason. Just trying to figure out placement to ensure it makes sense. Most of our livestock are in temporary pens until we narrow down what's profitable enough for us to continue. Lots of things to settle on still.
Actual info starts at 9:00 ...you're welcome.
Uh, thanks I guess. Nevermind the time spent editing the first 8 minutes and 59 seconds.
Do you get rats? I lived in the same place many years and I only got rats when I had a neighbour with chickens.
Great question and yes, we do get rats and other critters. They're around whenever food is being grown or you have animals consuming feed, so they're pretty common. We didn't have chickens at our place in the city but we did have rats because of the fruit trees.
Just curious have you considered sorghum?
Hey Tony. We've actually planted Sorghum both last year and again this year. I'll link a video we did at the end of last season for you here;
ruclips.net/video/AI-BO7wCR8Q/видео.html
It's primarily for soil building, but we are trying it as "pasture" for our turkeys this coming Summer/Fall.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thank you for the link, you did exactly what I was thinking, using sorghum for biomass to create better soil. You mentioned the birds were eating the seeds, wild birds or did the chickens eat it also?
@@tonyperkins3505 It was mainly wild birds (which we have a LOT of being the only game in town for water and food). We figure if we can get the turkeys in the same area it will feed them, add additional nutrition to the soil and keep the cycle going. It will be our first attempt with this type of rotation (pigs, sorghum, turkeys), so we'll see how it goes!
Rows should be starting from east to west and spaces should be a little bit more for more sunlight exposure
We're definitely going to thin, but I wouldn't think East/West vs North/South planting would make a difference in summer growing. Have you found it helps with these?
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I just viewed a video for Egyptian researcher and it was mentioned in the comments which the professor supervisor agreed on.
I need to ask you another thing for a former episode. Do you remember how many times you add fish hydrolysate to your previous pasture 5000 Sq ft near your house?
@@walidzahran601 We're going to be seeding behind the pigs again this weekend, so maybe we should try that East/West approach to the rows. For the pasture we only use the fish emulsion when we first establish the pasture before the chickens are run across it. Once the chickens have put manure on the ground we only use that as fertilizer moving forward.
You mean only once or every irrigation before chicken tractor pass?
@@walidzahran601 we only use it once to help the seeds germinate and start putting down roots.
Low key wondered if this was Tony Hawk for a minute.
Shh. Figured eventually the skating racket would take it's toll, so counting on this farming gig for retirement! - TH
Putting a light over the pile at night will attract millions of BUGS. Chickens love them, and their FREE
Great suggestion here David!
I wouldn't call that little electric tiller a "tiller" lol
There's not much too it compared to the gas powered tillers, that's for sure!
Not sure I could call that pasture
Most people would agree with that Doma. It looks a LOT different these days after a couple of years of chickens running across it!
You should really look into building up your top soil with organic matter and completely eliminating tilling all together. It destroys the life of your soil
Very true.
soldier fly larva .
Another fine option for chicken feed, that's for sure!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm yes please do it it's not expensive.. There are tons of video for cheap DIY specially from African countries they got good knowledge about cutting cost.. Your chickens and turkey would love it
Thanks for this info, it gives me some ideas on how to prepare for my chickens.
? Have you ever read John 3:16 in the Bible, God's Word. Here's what it says:
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
You can have this life by believing in Jesus Christ, God's Son. Go ahead and invite Him into your life, He'll come in and change it, so you can live with Him in heaven. 🙏💞
Glad you enjoyed this one and yes, I have read it many times. In fact, I read through the entire New Testament every 2 years or so. Along with a chapter of Proverbs and Psalms each morning.
Have you considered raising insect feeders? Probably the absolute lowest cost/space for the nutrition. Dubia roaches and mealworms are incredibly easy. They require very little care. I've raised them for reptiles but I'm sure chickens would love them. They'd readily eat that fruit you didn't want to ripen. Incredibly low risk as far as them escaping and causing a problem since they need humidity to breed which we obviously lack here.
That is a FANTASTIC question Michelle and we're kicking around some ideas. Interesting you mention Dubias. Our son had a bearded dragon for a few years and he bread the roaches. Lori was a little put off for a bit, but eventually came around. We've considered black solider flies, but for some reason I didn't think of the Dubia. Especially when they're small. Hmm....
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm If you do raise Dubias or crickets then be sure to wear at least a dust mask and preferably gloves when cleaning them. Repeated exposure, specifically the shed exoskeletons, can result in very nasty allergic reactions and even anaphylaxis. People downplay it but I've personally known keepers that cannot keep Dubias anymore due to the allergies.
@@xxMichelleUnicornxx I do remember the tub we kept them in getting pretty nasty over time, so that definitely makes sense. Thanks for the warning/tip on that!
Cow peas and sunflower seeds there now you don't have to listen to this guy ramble on for 20 minutes
Uh, thanks for the comment I guess...
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm your welcome & if your gonna make folks sit for 17 minutes, to be exact, at least cut out the midroll ads, sheesh!
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thanks for the video. Ignore the idiots like Dustin.
@@BackBasics-qb5hz we take it all in stride. Glad you enjoyed this one!
@@dustinmcdermont699 What an unhappy and impatient turd.
I don't buy anything from Tractor Supply anymore since they went woke with the transexual events dancing in front of kids.
Hmm, haven't heard of that before.
@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Off Grid With Doug and Stacy exposed it a few weeks ago. It caused a big brew haha but the information is out there.
@@DavidLeeRothsAlterEgo times sure are a-changin...
Ahh, permaculture people.and the conundrum of maintaining microorganisms vs tilling
True statement.